Jay Sean went to medical school!?
From med school to music to starting a record label
Hi, trailblazer! Simi Shah here. Welcome (back) to South Asian Trailblazers — a media platform, community, and agency dedicated to elevating leading South Asians. Today, we kick off Season 8 with Jay Sean. Yes, as in Baby, are you down, down, down — THAT Jay Sean.
More on that in a second. First, I want to tell you why this season is so special:
You’ll be able to watch EVERY future episode on YouTube and experience our conversations as if you’re in the room.
In case you want to actually be in the room next time, we’ve got exciting updates on new events, episodes, and our Agency. Follow along on LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and any major platform.
Podcast-lovers — never fear, you can still catch episodes on Apple, Spotify, and SouthAsianTrailblazers.com. (But we’ve got a new sound 😉)
P.S. I hope you’ll reply here anytime to share your thoughts on Season 8!
Season 8 Episode 1 🎤Jay Sean — Multi-Platinum Artist, Entrepreneur, & Record Label Executive
British-born international superstar and cultural icon Jay Sean took the US pop culture market by storm in the mid-2000s, launching a career that has spanned nearly 20 years. In addition to being the first Indian artist and the first South Asian artist in history to achieve a No. 1 on Billboard’s charts, he is also the first Indian artist and South Asian artist to land a No. 1 Latin single on Billboard; and the first British Asian artist to have simultaneous Top 10 Billboard singles in the U.S.
In 2024, he founded 3AM Entertainment, a record label under Virgin Music Group, alongside Range Media Partners, to support artists from the South Asian diaspora on their journey to becoming global stars. Jay is steadfast in his mission to change the mainstream music landscape and create more opportunity and representation for South Asian artist — catch some episode excerpts below!
Jay Sean on leaving medicine to pursue music
Simi: You were beatboxing, rapping, and entering freestyle battles, but what a lot of people don’t know is you actually went to medical school. Then, a couple of years in, you hit this turning point and decided to drop out. Can you tell us about that inflection point?
Jay Sean: Imagine telling your immigrant parents, ‘I’m quitting med school to rap.’ Believe it or not, my parents had my back. I had warned them I might do this, so they had time to process it, but it wasn’t an easy decision. Everyone around me said, ‘What do you mean you want to be a pop star? You’re in med school, halfway through—don’t be an idiot.’ But I couldn’t shake the music; it was always there.
Without sounding corny, when you know you’re meant to do something, you just know it. I trusted my intuition, even when it didn’t make sense to anyone else. And when Virgin Records came to sign me, I told my parents, ‘It’s happened. I’m quitting.’ They believed in me, and that belief gave me strength to keep going.
On the "Rocky moment" behind Ride It
Simi: You’ve described the period after parting ways with Virgin Records as your “Rocky moment.” It’s also the time that gave rise to your international hit song, Ride It, which opened the doors to your crossover into America. Can you share that story with us?
Jay Sean: That time in my life was terrifying. I had left Virgin Records and decided to go independent, but things weren’t coming together as I’d hoped. One day, I told my parents I was going to the studio—when in reality, I drove around the corner, parked my car, and cried. I thought, ‘What have I done? Maybe I made the wrong decision.’
Then, the universe threw me a lifeline. At an in-store signing, this 16-year-old kid came up to me and said, ‘I’m your biggest fan. I’m a producer. Can you listen to my demo?’ I played it on the way home, and it was incredible. I called him up, went to his house, and we started working. We made Ride It in a garden shed—just the two of us, no suits, no executives, just pure creativity. That song changed my life.
It’s a reminder: even in your lowest moments, keep going. You never know when the universe will open a door for you.
On starting his record label — 3AM Entertainment
Simi: You recently launched 3AM Entertainment to support South Asian artists. What inspired you to take this step, and what’s your vision for the label?
Jay Sean: It all goes back to when I started in the music industry and realized I was the only brown person in the room. There was no infrastructure, no representation—no one I could lean on and say, ‘How did you handle this?’ It was just me, figuring it out as I went.
I started 3AM Entertainment because I don’t want the next generation of South Asian artists to feel like lone soldiers. I want to create opportunities for them to shine and for their music to transcend borders, just like K-pop and Afrobeat have. This isn’t about one artist breaking through; it’s about building a movement.
The mission is simple: music first, artists first. If I can open doors and say, ‘Come on, gang, let’s show the world what we’re about,’ then I’ll feel like I’ve done my job.
Hooked yet? Tune in above on YouTube, on Apple, Spotify, or our website!
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That’s it for today, trailblazers. Talk in two weeks!